When should the landing gear be retracted?

Normally, the landing gear is retracted after lift-off when the airplane has reached an altitude where, in the event of an engine failure or other emergency requiring an aborted takeoff, the airplane could no longer be landed on the runway.

What device prevents the landing gear from being retracted while the aircraft is on the ground?

Ground locks are used in landing gear as extra insurance that the landing gear will remain locked in position while the aircraft is on the ground. A ground lock is an external device that is placed in the retraction mechanism to prevent its movement.

At what altitude do you lower landing gear?

six to five miles out
Most aircraft are typically at 10 knots at five miles out depending on the aircraft in route. This gives the pilot enough time to get off the runway. At six to five miles out is typically when the landing gear is dropped.

What happens if landing gear doesn’t go up?

A belly landing or gear-up landing occurs when an aircraft lands without its landing gear fully extended and uses its underside, or belly, as its primary landing device. Belly landings carry the risk that the aircraft may flip over, disintegrate, or catch fire if it lands too fast or too hard.

What happens if you retract the landing gear on the ground?

Sometimes pilots may retract landing gear a little early when they are taking off. As soon as the plane is lifting itself from the ground and the landing gear gets extended, they can move the lever and wheels go in. However, at this point nothing serious can happen, since the plane is already taking off anyway.

Why do planes circle before landing?

Why? Answer: The maneuver you describe is usually either a 360 degree turn issued by the air traffic controller to increase spacing between your flight and another airplane, or it was one turn in a holding pattern. The one turn in a holding can occur when the expected hold time is reduced, requiring only a single turn.

How far out do pilots lower the landing gear?

six to five miles

What is the purpose of retracting the landing gear?

Retracting at least the main landing gear, of course, reduced drag and allowed for better performance, and greater cruising speed. A significant engineering problem at the time was the force or power required to retract the landing gear. In the early years, it was done either manually or with heavy electric motors on larger aircraft.

Why do some planes leave their landing gear deployed all the time?

Planes can leave their gear deployed all through flight, provided they remain slow enough that the extra airflow drag doesn’t damage the airplane and landing gear. Planes that have retractable gear generally retract their gear for improved performance. Not having wheels and struts hanging down streamlines the plane,…

How does a landing gear motor work on a plane?

This motor is powered by the aircraft’s electrical system to operate a hydraulic pump used to pressurize hydraulic actuators. This pressure retracts the landing gear with fluid flow in one direction while hydraulic pressure in the opposing direction is used to drive the gear down.

How does gear length affect drag coefficient in aircraft?

Thus, extending the gear will increase the constant drag component, and while flying slower helps to reduce its contribution, it will drive up the lift-related drag component. In the end, the drag will be higher at all speeds. Typical drag contributions over speed for a glider. The physics for airliners is the same, only the numbers are bigger.